A Good Man Dies
by WhovianGirl
Summary: The Doctor invites his friends to Lake Silencio, but just who is Lyra Blake and why has he invited her too? AU The Impossible Astronaut. The Lady of Time part 1
1. Chapter 1

**(I've had this story in my head for a while now. It's an AU look at series 6 of Doctor Who and I'm working hard on chapter 2. This is somewhat of a preview. I'm not too sure about continuing. I'll leave that choice to the reviewers.)**

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><p>A bright morning sun shone through the window of an ordinary house in London, disturbing the sleep of 19 year old Lyra Anne Blake. She groaned, squeezing her eyes tight shut in the hopes the sun would just disappear. Of course, she knew it wouldn't happen. After about a minute, she opened her brown eyes and stretched. She threw her cover off and began her usual morning routine, not hurrying like she would if this had been a weekday. By the time she got downstairs she was a little more awake than she had been 30 minutes earlier.<p>

After making her usual Saturday breakfast of tea and toast, she settled in front of her TV and started the DVD she had brought the day before. Most people thought her taste in comedy was odd for a 19 year old, but Laurel and Hardy was an old favourite of hers. In fact, The Flying Deuces was her favourite Laurel and Hardy film. She'd had it on video tape for years and was thankful to finally own it on DVD. She knew this film so well she'd often replay it in her head during a boring class or difficult exam.

So when the strange man in the bowtie and fez suddenly appeared in the film she treasured, she had to do a double take. "What the..." she murmured, placing her cup of tea on the table in front of her. She heard the post arrive and paused the DVD, going to collect it.

Lyra narrowed her eyes at the only mail that arrived. She picked up the blue envelope and examined it closely. Finding no distinguishing features, she opened it and pulled out the single piece of card that lay within. On it was a time, a date, and a map reference. "What the bloody hell is this all about?" exclaimed Lyra loudly. This was shaping up to be a pretty weird day.

Lyra sat at her computer and typed in the map reference, indulging her curious side. She scoffed when she saw where she was expected to go. "I'm not going to bloody America!" she said to herself, screwing up both the envelope and the invite and throwing them in the bin.

OoOoOo

Centuries before, three men in traditional outfits rushed through a room. They all called out angrily for the Doctor several times as they tried to break into another room. When they managed to gain entry, there was just a woman and a painting of the Doctor.

"Where is the Doctor?" one of the men demanded.

"Doctor who?" asked the woman who had painted the Doctor, feigning ignorance.

Despite his efforts, the Doctor couldn't help but finally let out a sneeze he'd been keeping in. Now alerted to his presence, one of the men used his sword to lift the woman's dress, revealing the Doctor hidden, naked, beneath it.

The Doctor looked up at the three men nervously. "You know, this isn't nearly as bad as it looks."

OoOoOo

Present day, in a different part of the country, Amy Pond and Rory Williams were at their temporary home, Amy reading aloud from a book. "At the personal intervention of the King, the unnamed doctor was incarcerated without trial in the Tower of London."

Rory rolled his eyes at her. She'd been at this for far too long. "Okay, but it doesn't have to be him." insisted Rory.

"According to contemporary accounts, two nights later a magical sphere some twenty feet across was seen floating away from the tower, carrying the mysterious Doctor aloft." Amy continued, hoping this would bring Rory round to her way of thinking.

"Okay. It's him." Rory said, giving in.

"There's more."

OoOoOo

A few years after the Doctor had been caught naked under the woman's dress, he was once again up to mischief. A man crawled through some underground tunnels, attempting escape from a prison. "Doctor," he called, "Doctor, what can you see?" he asked the mystery man who was aiding him in his escape.

The Doctor's head appeared from an upwards leading tunnel. "Is the Commandant's office painted a sort of green colour with a big flag on the wall?" he enquired of the escapee. Before he could get an answer, alarms began to sound. "I think the answers probably yes." the Doctor said sheepishly.

OoOoOo

Meanwhile, back in 2011, Amy and Rory continued to discuss the Doctor's antics. "It's like he's being deliberately ridiculous, trying to attract out attention." Amy observed, throwing a glance at the TV. "Are we watching this again?" she added regarding Laurel and Hardy's The Flying Deuces.

Rory looked at the book as he answered Amy. "Yeah. I've explained the jokes." he told her, somewhat annoyed at her constant disinterest in a film he loved. The doorbell rang and Amy left to answer the door, returning moments later with the mail.  
>"So what are you saying? You really think he's back there trying to wave at us out of history books?" Rory asked, neither him nor Amy noticing the Doctor appear on screen in a bowtie and fez, waving at them and proceeding to dance with Laurel and Hardy.<p>

"It is the sort of thing he'd do." Amy pointed out.

"Yeah, but why?" Rory countered.

"Well, he said he'd be in touch."

"Two months ago!" argued Rory, growing ever more frustrated.

"Two months is nothing!" she retorted, sensing his frustration. "He's up to something, I know he is. I know him." mused Amy, opening the blue envelope that had arrived in the post.

Rory looked at Amy, who was looking at the mail with a small smile, and his expression turned to one of curiosity. "What is it? Amy?" he asked.

Amy pulled a thin piece of card from the envelope. "A date. A time. A map reference. I think it's an invitation." she replied.

"From who?" asked Rory, his attention now far from Laurel and Hardy.

"It's not signed." she stated. "Look. TARDIS blue." observed Amy, throwing the envelope onto the coffee table in front of Rory. They both knew only one person would communicate this way. The Doctor.

OoOoOo

Far across the stars in the Stormcage Containment Facility, Doctor River Song picked up the same invite Amy and Rory, and Lyra had received. Once again, she began packing in preparation for yet another escape from her cell. A guard spoke to his senior Cleric on the phone outside River's cell as alarms rang. "You better get down here, sir. She's doing it again." he informed the person at the other end of the line. He paused a moment before continuing. "Doctor Song, sir. She's packing. Says she's going to some planet called 'America'." he explained.

OoOoOo

Lyra Blake sat on the plane to America wondering why on Earth she had decided, against her better judgement, to go to Utah as the mysterious letter had instructed. She couldn't shake the feeling that the strange man that had appeared in The Flying Deuces that morning had something to do with the invitation. She also couldn't shake the feeling, once she left the airport, that the Scottish woman and her husband that were on the same flight as her were following her.

A feeling that seemed justified when they got on the same bus as her. When Lyra took a seat, she pulled the crumpled invite and envelope from her pocket. Seconds later, she felt someone tap her shoulder. Looking up, she sighed when she saw it was the Scottish woman.

"Hi," Amy said, smiling, "how do you know the Doctor?" she asked, giving a slight nod to the invite in Lyra's hand before pulling out her own.

Lyra looked at the invite the ginger woman held then back at the woman herself. "Do you mean to say you know who sent me this?" asked Lyra.

An expression of confusion crossed Amy's face as she sat in the seat across from Lyra, Rory too coming closer to sit in front of Lyra.

"You don't know who sent you the invite?" Amy asked, baffled as to why the young woman had been invited.

Lyra shook her head. "I honestly have no idea what this invite is all about, let alone who sent it."

"Oh," said Amy, "well our friend the Doctor sent these out. I can't exactly work out why he invited you, since you clearly don't know him, but I'm sure he has his reasons." Amy explained, trying to convince herself more than anyone else.

"Well if you could just fill me in..." Lyra requested, leaving the sentence hanging.

"Listen, you'll be fine. The Doctor's always got a reason. It's not always clear at first, but it does become clear eventually." Rory assured her, smiling softly. "By the way," he added, "I'm Rory Williams, and this is my wife Amelia Pond."

"Lyra Blake." Lyra introduced blandly, making the effort to half smile in a weak attempt at hiding her nerves and confusion.

The bus came to a slow halt in the middle of the dessert, and Amy, Rory, and Lyra stepped off the bus and looked around in confusion. "This is it, yeah?" Amy asked, clutching to the straps of her large rucksack. "Right place?"

"Uh. Nowhere. Middle of. Yeah. This is it." stated Rory. Lyra couldn't help but giggle at Rory's comment.

"Howdy." the greeting floated over to the three in an American accent. They all looked at the source of the voice. The source being a man laid back on the bonnet of a red 1960's station wagon. A man, despite donning a Stetson instead of a fez, Lyra immediately recognised as the person to have appeared in Laurel and Hardy.

"Doctor!" exclaimed Amy, grinning.

The Doctor smiled, slipping off the car and racing over to hug Amy. "Haha! It's the Ponds!"

Amy hugged him back, just glad to finally be back with the Doctor. "So, someone's been a busy boy then, eh?"

"Did you see me?" he asked her, smirking slightly.

"Of course!" answered Amy.

"Stalker." mocked the Doctor.

"Flirt." retorted Amy.

"Husband." Rory piped up, trying to draw attention to his presence.

The Doctor turned instantly to Rory and hugged him. "And Rory the Roman!"

Lyra raised her hand, speaking up finally. "Confused." she said, continuing the one word introductions.

The Doctor looked at Lyra and smiled softly. "All in good time, Lyra."

Lyra was about to argue, but Rory spoke over her, figuring it was best to let these things come out in their own time. "Nice hat."

The Doctor beamed. "I wear a Stetson now. Stetsons are cool."

Literally seconds after the Doctor finished speaking, Lyra squealed as the Stetson was shot right off the Doctor's head. All four turned to see River Song holding a gun, blowing softly into the barrel. She wore her trademark smirk, barely containing her glee at having once more disposed of another god awful hat that didn't suit the Doctor one bit.

"Hello Sweetie." she greeted.


	2. Chapter 2

**(Sorry! The readers should know my biggest flaw is procrastination! XD If I take forever to upload, I've not given up. It also doesnt help that I have no computer at home so I have to rely on my local library. Anywho, I'm working on chapter 3, but I've got a bit of writer's block. :P Expect the next chapter... um... soon? XD Thanks to the reviewers who seemed interested enough for me to continue. Also, thanks to Melissa for the support, and a huge thanks to Susan for the Beta Reading and the support. I would be nowhere without my sisters. I love you.)**

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><p>After River arrived and scared the hell out of Lyra, the five made their way to a diner. Lyra, River, and the Doctor sat, while Rory and Amy got drinks for everyone. Both the Doctor and River pulled out identical blue books, and Lyra looked at the design, intrigued.<p>

"Alright, then. Where are we? Have we done Easter Island yet?" River asked, looking at a page in the blue book.

The Doctor flicked through the pages of his book. "Um... yes! I've got Easter Island." he told her.

River smiled at the memory of Easter Island. "They worshipped you there. Have you seen the statues?"

The Doctor didn't answer, instead he continued to scroll through the pages of his book. "...Jim the Fish!" he exclaimed.

River looked up from her book, grinning. "Oh. Jim the Fish! How is he?" asked River, remembering Jim with a certain fondness.

"Still building his dam." replied the Doctor as Amy and Rory joined them with the drinks. Lyra smiled as Amy handed her the milkshake she had ordered.

"Thanks." she said, taking a sip through her straw. "Er, I hope you don't mind me asking, but what's with the books?"

"They're both time travellers. They never meet in the right order. They're syncing their diaries." explained Amy.

Lyra almost choked on her milkshake. "What? Time travellers?" she asked, turning to look at the Doctor. "_Time travellers?_" she repeated with even more emphasis.

"It's... complicated." Amy said. "So what's happening then?" she asked, addressing the Doctor. "'Cause you've been up to something."

The Doctor's expression fell, and Lyra could see a great sadness in his eyes. "I've been running." he began. "Faster than I've ever run. And I've been running my whole life. Now it's time to stop. And tonight I'm going to need you all with me."

A cold chill ran down Amy's spine. He looked like the Doctor, even sounded like him, but the Doctor Amy knew, _her_ Doctor, wouldn't give up. Despite being unnerved, she put on a brave face. "Okay. We're here. What's up?"

"A picnic." the Doctor replied. "And then a trip. Somewhere different. Somewhere brand new." he told them, smiling, though Lyra could still see the sadness in his eyes.

"Where" Amy asked.

The Doctor's smile grew, his eyes shining with excitement, and in a second he was the Doctor again. "Space. 1969."

After the group finished their drinks, the Doctor led them back to the lake and set up the picnic he had promised. "So," Rory began as they sat down, "when are we going to 1969?"

"And since when do you drink wine?" Amy added as the Doctor picked up the bottle of wine he had brought.

"I'm eleven hundred and three. I must've drunk it sometime." he told her, sounding a little offended. Lyra stared at the Doctor, wondering if she'd heard right. Looking at him, she guessed he was no older than about 25. The Doctor took a swig of the wine, and spat it right back out.

"Wine's horrid! I thought it would taste more like the gums!"

Lyra smiled, laughing a little. She honestly didn't know how to feel. The Doctor, Amy, Rory, and River seemed perfectly nice. But then one of them would say something that would make her think they were all crazy.

Amy looked at the Doctor in confusion. "Eleven hundred and three? You were nine hundred and eight last time I saw you." she said.

"And you've put on a couple of pounds!" exclaimed the Doctor, definitely sounding offended this time. "I wasn't going to mention it."

Amy, about to retort, stopped before any words could pass her lips. She looked into the distance and saw a tall figure on a hill. It wore a black suit and was emitting a sinister rattling noise. Amy couldn't make out any key features, but she was sure it wasn't human. "Who's that?" she asked, trying to draw the group's attention to the creature.

"Hm? Who's who?" enquired Rory.

Amy tore her eyes away from the creature to look at her husband, all memory of the creature seemingly disappearing. "Sorry, what?"

"What did you see?" he pressed. "You said you saw someone."

"No, I didn't." Amy insisted.

A look of worry crossed Rory's face. He had been told of the time Amy had looked into the eyes of a Weeping Angel. She had been counting down from ten without realising. He wondered if something similar was happening now.

The Doctor smiled up at the sky, completely ignoring the interaction between Rory and Amy. "Ah! The moon! Look at it! Of course you lot did a lot more than just look, didn't you? Big silvery thing in the sky. You couldn't resist it." he smiled softly. "Quite right."

Lyra thought over all that had been said and suddenly worked out where they were going. "The moon landing was in '69." observed Lyra. "Is that where we're going?"

The Doctor smiled at her, pleased she seemed to finally be okay with the situation. "Oh, a lot more happens in '69 than anyone remembers." he told her. "Human beings. I thought I'd never get done saving you."

Amy and Lyra watched as a car arrived, and a man got out. The Doctor, noticing that Lyra and Amy were looking at someone, stood and turned. He waved at the old man, who waved back. The Doctor knew it was time and sighed quietly.

"Who's he?" asked Amy, getting a bad feeling about the entire situation.

River and Rory both stood, looking towards the lake rather than at the man. "Oh my god!" River breathed.

Everyone's eyes now on the lake, they all watched as an astronaut walked out of the water. "You all need to stay back." the Doctor warned the four. "Whatever happens now you do not interfere. Clear?" he asked. Not bothering to wait for an answer, he walked over to the astronaut.

"That's an astronaut. That's an Apollo astronaut in the lake!" Rory stated in disbelief.

"Look!" murmured Amy as she watched the Doctor begin talking to the astronaut calmly.

"Hello." he said sadly. "It's okay, I know it's you." he assured the astronaut, who opened its helmet. "Well, then." The Doctor bowed his head, whilst the astronaut lifted its arm.

"What's he doing?" Lyra whispered nervously, hoping someone could explain.

Suddenly the astronaut shot a bolt of some kind of energy at the Doctor. "Doctor!" Amy screamed in horror, trying to rush to the Doctor's rescue, but River and Rory stopped her.

"Amy, stay back!" urged River. Lyra stood frozen by fear and confusion.

The Doctor was shot again by the astronaut, the force of the blast knocking him to the floor. The group watched as the Doctor began to glow in regeneration energy. The Doctor looked at his friends. "I'm sorry." said the Doctor, holding his arms out in preparation for a regeneration. However, the astronaut shot one final time during his regeneration and he was blasted back, his body motionless on the sand.


	3. Chapter 3

**(Procrastination strikes again. I hope the people reading this story aren't super impatient. XD Anyway, here it is. I kinda got a bit too eager so this chapter has gone without beta reading. I hope I've not missed any mistakes. XD)**

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><p>"No! Doctor!" River screamed, releasing Amy and rushing forward, Amy, Rory and Lyra following. Both River and Amy fell to the Doctor's side, while Rory and Lyra stood over the Doctor's body. River pulled a scanner from her pocket and scanned for life signs.<p>

"River. _River!_" Amy growled, wanting an answer. River looked at Amy and frowned, confirming the worst, that the Doctor was dead. "No. No." sobbed Amy.

River stood and drew her gun, firing at the astronaut until she ran out of bullets, but the astronaut escaped back in to the water unharmed. "Of course not." she mumbled. She turned to face Amy who was crying.

"River, he can't be dead. This isn't possible."

"Whatever that was, it killed him in the middle of his regeneration cycle." River explained. "His body was already dead. He didn't make it to the next one."

"But, maybe he's a clone or a duplicate or something." said Amy, determined to find some way to prove that the Doctor was still alive.

"I believe I can save you some time." said the man who had arrived in the car. "That most certainly _is_ the Doctor. And he is most certainly dead. He said you'd need this." he said, placing gasoline next to the Doctor.

"Gasoline?" asked Rory, confused.

River looked at it and understood instantly. "A Time Lord's body is miracle, even a dead one. There are whole empires out there who'd rip this world apart for just one cell. We can't leave him here. Or anywhere." she said.

Amy knelt over the Doctor, gently stroking his hair. "Wake up. Go on, wake up, you stupid, bloody idiot!" she cried, resting her head on his chest. "What do we do, Rory?"

"We're his friends." River stated. "We do what the Doctor's friends always do." she picked up the gasoline. "As we're told."

Lyra looked across the lake, spotting a disused boat. She may not have known the man, but he deserved a decent 'funeral'. "There's a boat. If we're gonna do this, let's do this properly." she suggested

OoOoOoOo

Hours later, at sunset, the five stood there and watched as the Doctor's body burned. River eventually turned to the man. "Who are you? Why did you come?" she asked.

"Same reason as you." he answered, pulling a blue envelope from his pocket. "Doctor Song, Amy, Rory, Lyra. I'm Canton Everett Delaware the Third. I won't be seeing you again, but you'll be seeing me." he said rather cryptically, smiling politely before turning and leaving the four of them baffled.

"Five." River said suddenly.

Rory looked at her. "Sorry, what?"

"The Doctor numbered the envelopes."

OoOoOoOo

Back at the diner, River started to explain to the confused trio the importance of the numbered envelopes. "Amy, Rory, you got three, I got two. Lyra, you got four, and Mr. Delaware was five."

"So?" asked Lyra, the point of numbered envelopes escaping her.

"So. Where's One?"

Realization dawned on Rory. "What, you think he invited someone else?"

"Well he must have." insisted River. "He planned all of this to the last detail."

"Will you two shut up," came a quiet Scottish voice behind them, "it doesn't matter."

"He was up to something."

"He's dead." countered Amy.

Ignoring Amy's protests, River continued to try and piece together the pieces of the puzzle. "'Space. 1969.' What did he mean?"

"You're still talking, but it doesn't matter." said Amy, her voice giving away her overwhelming sense of defeat.

"Hey!" Rory replied. "It mattered to him."

"So it matters to us." said River, finishing Rory's thought.

"He's _dead!_" Amy repeated.

"But he still needs us" said River. "I know, Amy. I _know._ But right now we have to focus." she soothed.

Lyra watched the three of them, feeling more out of place than ever. Sighing quietly, she turned away. It was at this point Lyra saw it. Another blue envelope. "Um, you three. There's another envelope." she said, picking it up.

River turned, taking the envelope from Lyra. "The Doctor knew he was going to his death, so he sent out messages. When you know it's the end, who do you call?" she asked.

"Your friends, people you can trust." answered Rory.

"Number one. Who did the Doctor trust the most?" asked River.

At that exact moment something happened that none of them could possibly have expected. The Doctor casually walked out from the back of the diner, a straw in his mouth.

Lyra's eyes widened and she looked at River, Rory and Amy in turn. Her eyes once again turned to the Doctor and she did something River really wished she hadn't. She screamed. "What the bloody hell is going on here?!" she yelled, fear and anger coursing through her veins.

River quickly took Lyra's arm and led her to the doors of the diner, speaking in a low voice. "Lyra, I know you're scared, angry, and confused. This hasn't been easy on you. But I promise you, you have my word that I will explain _all_ of this to you. Just not now. I am so sorry but you are just going to have to trust me."

"But River, we _just_ saw him die." Lyra countered.

"Yes, I know. Just... let me work this thing out. And try not to scream again. If I'm right, the Doctor _can't _know what we saw." said River. She then walked back to the Doctor, giving him a cold look. "As for you," she began, "this is cold. Even by your standards, this is cold."

"Or 'hello' as people used to say." replied the doctor, completely baffled by the brief interlude.

"Doctor!" breathed Amy.

"Just popped out to get my special straw. It adds more fizz." the Doctor said.

"You're ok. How can you be ok?" Amy asked.

"Hey," the Doctor began, pulling Amy in for a hug, "of course I'm ok! I'm the king of ok!" he assured her. He paused, pulling away from Amy. "That's a rubbish title, forget that title. Rory the Roman!" the Doctor exclaimed, grinning. "That's a good title. Hello, Rory." he hugged Rory, and then he turned to Lyra." And you... well... all in good time, I'm sure. And Doctor River Song. Oh you bad bad girl. What trouble have you got for me this time?" he asked. River's answer was a firm slap across his cheek. "Ok. I'm assuming that's for something I haven't done yet."

"Yes it is." confirmed River, who couldn't help but be amused by the satisfied smile on Lyra's face.

"Good. Looking forward to it." replied the Doctor.

"I don't understand. How can you be here?" asked Rory.

"I was invited. Date, map reference. Same as you lot, I assume. Otherwise it's a hell of a coincidence." the Doctor said.

"River, what's going on?" enquired Amy.

"Amy, ask him what age he is?" River ordered.

"That's a bit personal." argued the Doctor.

River rolled her eyes. This was no time for the Doctor to be secretive. "Tell her. Tell her what age you are."

The Doctor conceded. "Nine hundred and nine."

"But you said you..." Lyra began, confusion once more plaguing her mind.

"So where does this leave us?" River interrupted. "Jim the Fish? Have we done Jim the Fish yet?" she asked.

"Who's Jim the Fish?" the Doctor asked, intrigued.

"I don't understand." Amy said.

"Yeah, you do." Rory countered, hoping she'd catch on to the situation.

"I don't." the Doctor interceded. "What are we all doing here?"

River composed herself mentally, sorting her story out. "We've been recruited. Something to do with space, 1969. And a man called Canton Everett Delaware the third."

"Recruited by who?" enquired the Doctor, sensing something not quite right with the situation.

"Someone who trusts you more than anyone else in the universe." explained River.

"And who's that?" the Doctor pushed, getting rather annoyed with everyone being vague.

There was only one thing River could possibly say. Only one thing that could end the conversation completely.

"Spoilers."


	4. Chapter 4

**(It took ages for me to get this one and the next one beta'd (there's probably still _something _wrong) but here it is. I'm working really hard on getting this story finished. Credit to my brother, DreamWeaver1985, for beta reading this for me.)**

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><p>The Doctor, Amy, Rory, River, and Lyra had all gathered in the TARDIS. The Doctor was doing his usual dance around the console, flicking levers and pushing buttons. "1969. That's an easy one. Funny how some years are easy. Now, 1482, full of glitches." said the Doctor. "Now then!" he exclaimed, his expression faltering when Amy left in favour of the area beneath the console. "Canton Everett Delaware the Third. That was his name, yeah?" he asked. "How many of those can there be? Well… three, I suppose." he quipped, once more feeling like all was not ok when River left to join Amy. "…Rory, is everyone cross with me for some reason?" he enquired.<p>

Rory raised his finger and opened his mouth, wondering for one moment whether or not he should say yes. However, he wasn't entirely sure if Amy and River were mad or just confused, so he closed his mouth and lowered his finger. "I'll find out." he said, leaving to join Amy and River.

The Doctor turned and smiled at Lyra. "Well, at least you're still here. Guess I can always count on that." he murmured. He turned away from her and leaned over the console, closing his eyes.

Lyra watched him, confused. "What do you mean?" she asked.

The Doctor turned back to her, wearing his usual smile. "I just mean you seem like the type who's always there for people." he explained.

Lyra raised her eyebrows. "Do you always make those kinds of judgements about people you barely know?" she enquired, smirking.

"Always." he said, his smile growing when Lyra laughed.

Under the console, Amy once more requested an explanation for the confusion with the Doctor. "Explain it again?"

"The Doctor we saw on the beach is a future version two hundred years older than the one up there." River explained quietly.

"But all that's still gonna happen? He's still gonna die?" asked Amy.

River smiled softly. "We're all gonna do that, Amy."

"We're all not going to arrange our own wake and invite ourselves." observed Rory. "So the Doctor, in the future, knowing he's going to die, recruits his younger self and all of us to… to what, exactly? Avenge him?" he asked.

River shook her head. "No. Avenging's not his style."

"Save him." suggested Amy, hoping she was right.

"That's not his style either." said Rory.

"We have to tell him." Amy stated.

"We've told him all we can." River said. "We can't even tell him we've seen his future self. He's interacted with his own past. It could rip a hole in the universe." she explained.

"Except he's done it before!" insisted Amy.

"And in fairness, the universe _did _blow up." Rory countered.

"But he'd want to know!" Amy growled, growing impatient.

"Would he?" questioned River. "Would anyone?"

The Doctor suddenly stuck his head under the console. "I'm being extremely clever up here and there's no-one to stand around looking impressed. Lyra's not giving me anything! What's the point in having you all?" he asked, disappearing again.

"Couldn't you just slap him sometimes?" River asked.

Lyra popped her head under the console. "Just so you know, he's really not being all that impressive." she said.

"Oi!" the Doctor yelled angrily as Lyra popped her head back up.

River turned to Amy and Rory, her trademark smirk on her face. "I _like _that girl!"

"River, we can't just let him die! We have to stop it. How can you be ok with this?" she asked.

"The Doctor's death doesn't frighten me. Nor does my own." River confessed. "There's a far worse day coming for me." she added, leading Amy and Rory up to re-join the Doctor and Lyra.

"Time isn't a straight line." the Doctor began explaining, clearly glad to have an audience again. "It's all… bumpy-wumpy." he said, throwing a glare that seemed to mask a smirk at Lyra when she scoffed. "There's loads of boring stuff. Like Sundays and Tuesdays and Thursday afternoons. But now and then there are Saturdays. Big temporal tipping points when anything's possible. The TARDIS can't resist them. Like a moth to a flame. She loves a party, so I give her 1969 and NASA 'cause that's space in the 60s. And Canton Everett Delaware III. And this is where she's pointing." he said, showing the monitor to everyone.

"Washington D.C. April the 8th, 1969." read Amy. "So why haven't we landed?" she asked.

"'Cause that's not where we're going." the Doctor answered.

"Where _are _we going?" asked Rory.

"Home." he replied. "Well, you two are. Off you pop and make babies. Lyra, you return home and finish college. And you, Dr Song, back to prison. And me, I'm late for a biplane lesson in 1911, or it could be knitting. Knitting or biplanes, one or the other." he said, sitting in the jump seat. "What?" he asked when he saw four very confused faces looking at him. "A mysterious summons? You think I'm just going to go? Who sent those messages?" he asked. "I know you know." he said when nobody answered. "I can see it in your faces. Don't play games with me. Don't ever, ever think you're capable of that."

"You're going to have to trust us this time." urged River.

"Trust you." began the Doctor, standing and approaching River. "Sure. But first of all, Doctor Song, just one thing. Who are you? You're someone from my future, getting that, but who?" he asked. When River didn't answer, he tried a different approach. "Okay. Why are you in prison? Who did you kill, hm? Now, I love a bad girl, me. But trust you? Seriously?"

"Trust _me_." Amy said, making the Doctor turn.

"Ok." he responded, walking over to her.

"You _have_ to do this, and you can't ask why." she told him.

The Doctor remained silent for a few moments, observing her closely. "Are you being threatened? Is someone making you say that?" he asked.

"No." replied Amy.

"You're lying." stated the Doctor.

"I'm not lying!" she insisted.

"Swear to me." demanded the Doctor. "Swear to me on something that matters."

Amy didn't respond right away. She searched her mind for something important to her. And then she found it. The one thing that was just hers and the Doctor's. Her lips curved into a warm smile. "Fish fingers and custard."

The Doctor returned the smile. "My life in your hands, Amelia Pond." he murmured, slowly turning and walking away from Amy.

"Thank you" River said quietly.

"So!" the Doctor exclaimed, his child-like demeanour returning. "Canton Everett Delaware III. Who's he?"

OoOoOo

"Who wants to know?" asked Canton, who was sat in a dark bar. He didn't bother turning to look at the two men in trench coats who'd said his name.

"Your boss." one of the agents answered.

"I don't have a boss anymore." Canton said, downing a shot.

"Maybe you wanna tell that to the President of the United States." countered the agent.

OoOoOo

"Ex-FBI. Got kicked out." River said, looking at his file.

"Why?" asked the Doctor.

OoOoOo

Canton was sat in the back of a car, the two agents driving as Canton spoke on the phone to Richard Nixon. "I understand you have a problem with authority." said Nixon.

"Thank you." Canton replied.

"It's not a compliment, son." responded Nixon.

OoOoOo

"6 weeks after he left the bureau, the President contacted him for a private meeting." said River.

"Yeah, 1969. Who's the President?" enquired the Doctor.

OoOoOo

"This is a personal matter." said Nixon, still on the phone to Canton. "I need someone on the outside. Someone with FBI training, but is not in contact with them."

"I'm flattered." responded Canton.

"You were my second choice for this, Mr. Delaware." Nixon said firmly.

"That's ok. You were my second choice for President, Mr. Nixon." he countered.

OoOoOo

River continued to read from the monitor. "Richard Milhous Nixon. Vietnam, Watergate. There's some good stuff too."

"Not enough." the Doctor said somewhat coldly.

"Hippy!" exclaimed River.

"Archaeologist." the Doctor retorted.

OoOoOO

Canton was now sat in the office of Richard Nixon, listening to him explain his problem. "Every day, wherever I am, I get a phone call."

"People can't just call you, Mr President." stated Canton.

Ignoring Canton, Nixon continued. "It's a direct call every time. Every day for the last two weeks. Usually late at night."

"Man or woman?" asked Canton.

"Neither." Nixon said, reaching for the recording of one of the calls. "Listen."


	5. Chapter 5

**(The note on the last chapter pretty much says it all. Again, thanks to DreamWeaver1985 (my brother) for beta reading these last two chapters.)**

* * *

><p>"Okay!" the Doctor exclaimed. "Since I don't know what I'm getting into this time, for once I'm being discrete. Putting the engines on silent" he said, pulling a lever.<p>

A metallic screeching sound filled the control room, making Lyra, Rory, and Amy cover their ears. Rolling her eyes, River set the lever back into its original position.

"Did you do something?" the Doctor asked River.

"No!" she assured him. "Just… watching."

"Putting the outer shell on invisible." he continued, eyeing River suspiciously. "Haven't done this in a while, big drain on the power."

"You can turn the TARDIS invisible?" Rory asked in surprise.

The Doctor flicked a switch, flashing a grin at Rory. "Ha."

Bright lights suddenly shone and River shook her head, once more fixing the Doctor's mistake. "Very nearly." she murmured, winking at Lyra when she giggled softly.

"Did you touch something?" the Doctor asked, yet again looking at River with apprehension.

"Just admiring your skills, sweetie." River lied.

"Good. You might learn something." he said, noticing Lyra trying not to laugh. "Okay. Now… can't check the scanner, doesn't work when we're cloaked. Just give us a mo'." he said, running to the door, the others following closely. "Woah, woah, woah, woah!" he exclaimed. "You lot, wait a moment. We're in the middle of the most powerful city in the most powerful country on Earth. Let's take it slow." he finished, smiling and exiting the TARDIS.

Unfortunately for him, he exited into the Oval Office, the president just ahead. President Nixon was facing the window and the only other person in the room was sat looking away from the Doctor, the two of them listening to a recording.

"_Hello? Who is this? This is President Nixon. Who's calling?" he asked, pausing. "Is this… you again?"_

"_Mr President?" a girl asked._

"A child?" enquired Canton, shocked.

"_This is the President, yes." answered Nixon._

"_I'm scared, Mr President." the girl said. "I'm scared of the space man."_

"A little girl." guessed Canton.

"Boy." Nixon corrected.

"How can you be so sure?" asked Canton.

As the recording continued, the Doctor quietly pulled a small notebook from his pocket and began taking notes.

"_What space man? Where are you calling from? Where are you right now? Who are you?" asked Nixon._

"_Jefferson Adams Hamilton." answered the girl._

"_Jefferson, listen to me." Nixon said._

The recording beeped marking the connection cutting. "Surely this is something the bureau could handle, sir." stated Canton.

"These calls happen wherever I am." Nixon observed. "How do I know the bureau isn't involved? I can't trust anyo-" Nixon stopped abruptly as he turned around and saw the Doctor.

Canton turned to see what Nixon was looking at then stood. Looking up from his pad, the Doctor gestured for the two to carry on talking and returned to his note taking. After a few seconds, it dawned on the Doctor that he may be in quite a bit of trouble and he looked up once more.

"Oh! Hello. Bad moment. Oh look, this is the Oval Office. I was looking for the… uh, oblong room. I'll, I'll, I'll just be off, shall I?" he said, turning and walking right into the invisible TARDIS.

The control room shook when the Doctor bumped into the TARDIS. "Every time." sighed River.

"Don't worry! Always does that when it's cloaked." the Doctor said, exclaiming when Canton grabbed him and forced him to the ground.

"He said the scanner wouldn't work." said Lyra when River started fiddling with it.

"I know." she replied, working to fix it. "Bless."

Guards poured into the Oval Office, securing the Doctor and aiming their weapons at him. "River, have you got my scanner working yet?" he called, panic rising.

"Oh, I hate him." growled River.

"No you don't!" the Doctor called, an instinct telling him that River had once again expressed her 'hatred' of him. The guards began to lead the President out of the room. "River, make her blue again!" he urged.

River pressed a button and pulled a lever and the TARDIS became visible again. The guards, the President, and Canton all froze in shock.

"What the hell is that?" asked Nixon.

In their shock, the guards didn't notice the Doctor move from the floor to the President's chair. When they realised he was no longer contained, they all spun and pointed their guns at him.

"Mr President." the Doctor began in his American accent. "That child just told you everything you needed to know, but you weren't listening. Never mind, though, 'cause the answer's yes. I'll take the case. Fellas, the guns? Really? I just walked into the highest security office in the United States and parked a big blue box on the rug. You think you can just shoot me?" he asked.

"They're Americans!" River exclaimed as she stepped out of the TARDIS.

When the guards moved their aim to River, the Doctor leaped up. "Don't shoot, definitely no shooting!"

Rory stepped out of the TARDIS with Amy and Lyra, all three of them raising their hands. "Don't need to shoot us either. Very much not in the need of getting shot! Look, we've got our hands up!"

"Who the hell are you?" Nixon asked the four newcomers.

"Sir, you need to stay back." warned Canton, his gun also aimed at the four.

"But who… who are they? What is that box?" Nixon pressed.

"It's a police box. Can't you read?" the Doctor said, on full alert now his friends were at risk of being killed. "I'm your new undercover agent, on loan from Scotland Yard. Code name The Doctor. These are my top operatives. The Legs, The Nose, The Heart, and Mrs. Robinson." he explained, pointing to Amy, Rory, Lyra, then River.

"I hate you." repeated River, this time sounding like she almost meant it.

"No you don't" responded the Doctor, not noticing the slight difference in the way she said it.

"Who _are_ you?" Nixon asked again, growing impatient.

"Nah, boring question. 'Who's phoning you?' That's interesting. 'Cause Canton 3 is right, that's definitely a girl's voice. Which means there's only one place in America she could be phoning from." said the Doctor, seeming to no longer be bothered by the guns pointed at himself and his friends.

"Where?" asked Canton, his curiosity getting the better of him.

"Do not engage with the intruder, Mr Delaware!" ordered one of the guards.

"You heard everything I heard." stated the Doctor. "It's simple enough. Give me five minutes, I'll explain. On the other hand," he said, sitting back down, "lay a finger on me or my friends and you'll never ever know."

"How'd you get it in here?" Canton asked the Doctor, referring to the TARDIS. "I mean, you didn't carry it in.

"Clever, eh?" replied the Doctor, smiling.

"Love it." said Canton.

The guard who had warned Canton not to engage with the Doctor gave him a disbelieving look. "Do not _compliment_ the intruder!"

"Five minutes?" asked Canton.

"Five." the Doctor confirmed.

"Mr President," began the guard, "that man is a clear and present danger to-"

"Mr President," Canton interrupted, "that man walked in here with a big blue box and four of his friends. And that's the man he walked past. One of 'em's worth listening to. I say we give him five minutes, see if he delivers."

"Thanks, Canton." said the Doctor.

"If he doesn't, I'll shoot him myself." Canton promised.

The Doctor's expression fell. "Not so thanks." he muttered.

"Sir," the guard began, once more trying to convince the President that the Doctor was dangerous, "I cannot recommend-"

"Shut up, Peterson!" ordered Nixon. "Alright." he said, addressing Canton.

"Five minutes." repeated Canton, looking at the Doctor.

The Doctor moved so he was in a less casual position and grinned. "I'm going to need a SWAT team ready to mobilize, street-level maps covering all of Florida, a pot of coffee, twelve jammie dodgers, and a fez."

Canton stared at the Doctor for a moment, thinking that trusting him might not be such a good idea after all. After a few moments, he broke his silence. "Get him his maps."


	6. Chapter 6

**(Huge credit to my brother, DreamWeaver1985, for beta reading for me. I know me constantly pulling you away from you work is annoying, but you help me anyway. Thanks. 3)**

* * *

><p>The Oval Office was in full-on research mode. The Doctor and Canton were looking at the maps while everyone watched and waited for the Doctor to announce where they were headed next.<p>

"Why Florida?" asked Canton.

"That's where NASA is." the Doctor told him. "She mentioned a spaceman. NASA's where the spacemen live. Also, there's another lead I'm following."

Amy tensed subtly at the mention of a spaceman, and she turned to River. "Spaceman? Like the one we saw at the lake?" she asked quietly.

"Maybe." murmured River in response. "Probably."

Sighing, Amy turned away from River, her eyes falling on a sinister figure standing in the doorway of the office. The memory of the figure at Lake Silencio returned to her and panic began to rise. "I remember." she told it.

"Amy?" Rory asked, stepping in front of her, his form blocking the creature from Amy's view. "What do you remember?"

"I don't know, I just…" she muttered, searching her memory for whatever she was meant to have remembered.

"Amy, what's wrong?" Rory asked, growing concerned.

Lyra and River shared a worried look before approaching the Scot. "Amy?" Lyra murmured.

The Doctor moved his focus from the maps to Amy, walking over to join the three who'd grouped around her. "You alright?"

Amy, who was both confused and becoming a little overwhelmed by the attention that was focused on her, nodded. "Uh, yeah, I'm fine, just feeling a little sick." she told them, walking over to two of the guards. "Excuse me, is there a toilet or something?"

"Sorry, Ma'am," Peterson began, "while this procedure is ongoing, you must remain within the Oval Office."

Canton sighed and rolled his eyes. "Shut up and take her to the restroom." he ordered. As the other guard led Amy out of the office, Canton turned back to the Doctor. "Your five minutes are up."

"Yeah, and where's my fez?" he responded.

OoOoOo

Amy followed the guard through the halls of the Whitehouse until they came to the restroom. She pushed open the door to the restroom, stopping for a moment when the guard appeared to be ready to follow her in. "Actually, I can usually manage this alone." she said firmly. She entered the restroom alone, gasping when she saw the creature again. "I saw you before." she said. "At the lake. And here. But then I forgot… How did I forget?!... What are you?!" she asked it. A toilet flushed and the creature and Amy watched as a woman stepped out of one of the cubicles. "Get back" warned Amy. "Stay back from it!"

The woman looked at Amy then turned and exclaimed in shock when she saw the creature. "Ah! Oh my god, what is that? Is that a mask? Is that a Star Trek thing? Ben, is that you?" she asked.

"Get back from it now!" urged Amy.

The woman turned back to Amy, a confused expression appearing on her face. "Back from what, honey?"

"That!" Amy growled.

Once again, she turned to the creature and exclaimed, "Ah! Oh my god! Look at that! Is that a Star Trek mask? Ben, that's gotta be you." she said, pausing for a moment. "Hang on, did I just say all that?"

"No, please! You've got to stay back!" Amy said urgently.

The woman turned her attention back to Amy. "Back, honey? Back from what?" she asked. The lights flickered and the woman glanced at them for a moment before looking at Amy again. "Oh those lights, they never fix them."

"Look behind you." Amy ordered her.

With a small laugh, the woman flashed the ginger a reassuring smile. "Honey, there is nothing…" she began, trailing off when she turned to the creature one last time. The creature, now surrounded by electricity, stretched its arm out and shot one bolt of the electricity at her. Screaming, the woman exploded.

Amy watched in distress as the woman was killed. When the woman was nothing but a few ashes floating in the air, Amy turned her gaze to the creature, a mixture of fear and anger in her eyes. "You didn't have to kill her!" she growled. "She didn't even remember you! How does that work? We can only remember you while we're seeing you, is that it?" she asked, an idea forming in her mind. Taking her mobile from her pocket, Amy quickly snapped a picture of the creature. _"_Why did you have to kill her?" she demanded.

The creature simply stared at the ginger time traveller. "Joy." it said, its voice taking on a sinister echo quality. "Her name was Joy. Your name is Amelia. You will tell the Doctor."

"Tell him what?"

"What he must know." it answered cryptically. "And what he must never know."

All fear and anger left Amy's eyes, to be replaced by shock. How could this creature know her secret? "How do you know about that?"

"Tell him!" was all the creature offered in return.

As the creature began to crackle with electricity once again, Amy quickly turned and raced out of the toilet, colliding with the guard who had escorted her. "You ok?" he asked her, mildly concerned by her apparent fear.

All memory of the encounter forgotten, Amy calmed down in seconds and wondered why the guard seemed to be so worried. "I'm fine." she assured him. "Much better, thanks."

The guard cast his eyes down to the object in Amy's hand. "What's that?" he asked.

Amy, too, looked down to see what the guard was asking after. "It's my phone." she told him simply, forgetting that she was in a time before cellular devices had been invented.

"Your phone?" he countered incredulously.

"I have to tell the Doctor." Amy stated suddenly, the spark of a distant memory lighting in her mind.

"Tell him what, Ma'am?"

Amy paused, searching her mind for an answer to his question. What _had _she meant? What was there that she needed to tell the Doctor so urgently? "Sorry, I don't know why I said that..." she confessed.

The guard watched Amy carefully, trying to gauge if she was trying to hide something or if she was genuinely confused. "...This way, Ma'am."

OoOoOo

Back in the Oval Office, the Doctor, his friends and their temporary comrades were hard at work when the phone began to ring. The Doctor kept his attention on the maps, while Canton looked towards the ringing phone. "The kid?" asked Canton.

His eyes on the Doctor, President Nixon asked, "Should I answer it?"

"Here!" the Doctor exclaimed, leaving Nixon's question unanswered as he jabbed his finger down on the map. "The only place in the United States that call could be coming from. See, obvious when you think about it."

Canton looked at the map then at the Doctor, an admiring smile appearing on his face. "You, sir," he said in awe, "are a genius." he said, complimenting the intruder once again.

"A hobby." the Doctor replied smugly.

"Mr. President," Canton announced, "answer the phone."

Nixon obeyed, hesitantly lifting the phone and putting it to his ear. "Hello?" he said slowly. "This is President Nixon."

"It's here!" the girl cried desperately. "The spaceman's here! It's gonna get me! It's gonna eat me!"

"There's no time for a SWAT team, let's go!" the Doctor said in response, his tone taking on a serious edge. "Mr. President, tell her help's on the way. Canton, on no account follow me into this box," he warned, "and close the door behind you." he added, very much needing Mr. Delaware III to follow him.

"What the hell are you doing?!" asked Canton, entering the TARDIS after the Doctor and his friends.

"Mr President? Please help!" the girl begged. "Please help me!

"Jefferson," the President began comfortingly, still mistaking the girl for a young boy, "I'm sending my best people."


	7. Chapter 7

Canton looked around the awe-inspiring interior of the TARDIS in wonder, Rory standing behind him. Meanwhile, the Doctor, Amy, Lyra and River stood at the console, the Doctor fiddling with controls_. "_Jefferson isn't a girl's name." the Doctor explained. "It's not her name either. Jefferson Adams Hamilton. River?"

"Surnames of three of America's Founding Fathers." replied Lyra automatically. The Doctor gave her a curious look. "I'm studying American History at college." she confessed, smiling sheepishly.

The Doctor gave Lyra an appreciative nod. "Lovely fellas." he noted. "Two of them fancied me." he added as an afterthought, winking at Lyra, which just confused the blonde even more than she already was.

Rory, still standing at Canton's side, watched the ex-FBI Agent carefully. "You okay?" he asked, concerned as Canton merely spun slowly around, still taking everything in. "Coping?"

The Doctor, oblivious to Canton's continued shock, didn't falter in his explanation. "You see, the President asked the child two questions; Where are you, and who are you. She was answering where."

"It's bigger on the inside." breathed Canton, his eyes still scanning everything there was to see.

Rory knew this feeling all too well. Despite seeming calm upon first entering the TARDIS - to this day he remembered fondly the memory of telling the Doctor he knew exactly how the TARDIS worked - Rory had actually been even more shocked than Canton. Reading about how time and space travel worked and actually seeing it in action, it seemed, were two very different things. "Yeah, you get used to it."

"Now!" exclaimed the Doctor, oblivious to Canton and Rory's exchange, "Where would you find three big historical names in a row like that?"

Amy knew the Doctor well enough to know he was in full-blown show-off mode, and if she didn't feed the beast he'd go off in a strop, so she conceded and decided to allow the Doctor to show his 'vast intelligence' by asking, "Where?"

"Here!" he answered, a grin on his face. "Come on!" he beckoned, racing to the doors with his companions in tow.

As the Doctor approached him, Canton looked at him, a perplexed expression on his face. "It's ah..." he fumbled, trying to find words to describe the magnificent machine.

Amused, the Doctor ignored Canton's confusion. "Lyra," he called over his shoulder, "Be a dear and take care of this, would you?" he requested, moving past Canton and towards the doors without waiting for an answer. "Ponds, River, with me." he called, and he was gone.

Lyra looked on, bewildered. "Why me?" she groaned.

Barely containing her amusement, Amy stepped towards Lyra and placed an arm on the blonde's shoulder, adopting a sympathetic expression. "'Cause you're the newest." she told her before turning and leaving with her husband and River.

"Exactly!" Lyra called after them desperately. "I'm new! I don't know anything!" But her pleas fell on deaf ears and, as she turned to an expectant Canton, she gave another groan of defeat.

Outside the TARDIS, the Doctor, River, Rory and Amy were gathered in an empty room of a cold building. "Where are we?" asked Amy, still not sure where Jefferson Adams Hamilton was exactly.

"About five miles from Cape Kennedy Space Center," was the Doctor's answer. "It's 1969! The year of the moon! Interesting, don't you think?"

"But why would the little girl be here?" Amy pressed.

The Doctor looked at Amy, expertly hiding the concern he had for the little girl that had brought them all here. "I don't know. Lost, maybe. The President asked her where she was and she did what any lost little girl would do." he said, moving to the window and looking out at the dark street, illuminated only by street lamps. "She looked out of the window."

Amy followed suit, gazing out of the window. "Streets. Of course! Street names."

The Doctor smiled. "The only place in Florida, probably all of America, where those three street names are in the same junction, and Doctor Song, you've got that face on again.

River, who had been focused on the signs on the street corner, turned her attention to the Doctor. "What face?" she asked, knowing she wouldn't like the answer one bit.

"The "He's hot when he's clever" face." he responded, throwing a glance in her direction while a small smirk appeared on his face.

"This is my normal face." River countered, almost immediately regretting speaking the words, because she knew what would come next.

"Yes it is." agreed the Doctor.

River glared at the unfashionable Time Lord. "Oh, shut up." she snapped lightheartedly, knowing she only had herself to blame.

"Not a chance."

It was at this that Canton and Lyra exited the TARDIS, and if Canton had looked confused before it was nothing compared to his reaction at being in a different place. "We've moved! How... How can we have we moved?"

The Doctor looked from Canton to Lyra. "You haven't even got to space travel yet?"

Lyra shot the Doctor a cold look. "I told you I didn't know anything!" she growled. "I explained it as best I could."

_Five Minutes Earlier_

"Right… uh… how to explain this thing." Lyra murmured to herself, glancing around in hope of finding some inspiration. "It's, uh, it's this machine… thing. And it… well, I don't quite know how it works." she admitted. "It shakes about a lot! I think. And it goes through time. At least, the Doctor makes it sound like it does. Well, we ended up in 1969 so I reckon it can." Lyra raised her eyebrows hopefully, expecting Canton to get it all now, but he simply stood there gawping at her as confused as he was when Lyra started speaking. Lyra's shoulders slumped and she sighed. "Oh forget it, let's just go."

OoOoOO

The Doctor gave Lyra a look that said 'really?' and she shrugged. "Well, I did mention the time travel thing!" she said brightly, hoping that scored her a few points.

"Time travel?" asked a stunned Canton.

"Brave heart, Canton!" the Doctor said encouragingly. "Come on!" And with that he left the room and ventured into the unknown, once more leaving Lyra to see if Canton was ok.

Taking a deep breath, Canton adjusted his world view. "So we're in a box that's bigger on the inside and it travels through time and space?" he asked.

"Uh, yeah, basically, I think." she confirmed uncertainly.

"How long have Scotland Yard had this?"

The Doctor and his friends took in their new surroundings. "It's a warehouse of some kind." noted River. "Disused."

"You realize this is almost certainly a trap, of course." responded the Doctor calmly, as though the idea didn't phase him.

River nodded, still looking around. "I noticed the phone, yes."

Amy looked between the Doctor and River, feeling like she was missing something. "What about it?"

"It's cut off," explained River, "so how did the child phone from here?"

"Okay, but why would anyone want to trap us?" the ginger Scot enquired.

"Don't know." the Doctor responded casually. "Let's see if anyone tries to kill us and work backwards."

As the group walked through the empty warehouse, the astronaut from Lake Silencio lurked in the shadows, watching silently. "Now why would a little girl be here?" River asked, clueless to their hidden observer.

"I don't know. Let's find her and ask her." suggested the Doctor.

River, noting a strange machine with thick wires protruding from it, walked over to observe the peculiar mechanism further. _"_It's non-terrestrial." she said, pulling out her scanner. "Definitely alien. Probably not even from this time zone."

"Which is odd," the Doctor continued, approaching a box of space equipment, "because look at this!"

"It's Earth tech!" a baffled River stated. "Contemporary!"

**"**Very contemporary!" the Doctor agreed. "Cutting edge! This is from the Space Program!"

"Stolen?" River postulated.

Amy scoffed lightly. "What, by aliens?"

The Doctor, still distracted by the box, didn't note Amy's derision at the idea of aliens stealing items from the Earth Space Program. "Apparently!"

"But, why?" she asked, making her skepticism known. "I mean if you could make it all the way to Earth why steal technology that could barely make it to the moon?"

"Maybe 'cause it's cooler!" offered the Doctor, grinning as he found an astronaut's helmet and putting it on, lifting the visor. "Look at how cool this stuff is!"

Amy still wasn't sure. "What, cool aliens?"

"Well what would you call me?" asked the Doctor, preparing himself for another ego boost.

"An alien." countered Amy with a smirk.

"Oi!" the Doctor snapped, taking the helmet off and watching as Lyra and Canton approached_._

"I think he's okay now." said a considerably cheerier Lyra, after having bonded with Canton over how new they both were to the Doctor's lifestyle.

"Ah!" the Doctor exclaimed happily. "Back with us, Canton?"

"I like your wheels." Canton offered calmly, taking a cursory glance around the warehouse.

The Doctor grinned. "That's my boy. So come on! Little girl! Let's find her."

Amy moved over to River, throwing a cautious glance over to the Doctor to make sure he wouldn't be able to hear her. "River..." she began.

"I know what you're thinking." interrupted River.

Amy's eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "No, you don't."

"You're thinking if we can find the spaceman in 1969 and neutralize it, then it won't be around in 2011 to kill the Doctor.""

"Okay, lucky guess." Amy grumbled.

River met Amy's gaze. "It's only because I was thinking it too." she confessed sincerely.

Hope swelled within Amy. "So let's do it!"

"It doesn't work like that." River said matter-of-factly. "We came here because of what we saw in the future. If we try and prevent the future from happening we create a paradox."

"Time can be rewritten." insisted Amy.

"Not all of it."

"Says who?"

"Who d'you think?" asked River, nodding to the Doctor. Something caught River's attention and she shone her torch on a manhole. "...What's this?" she murmured.

Amy's gaze was now on the Doctor. "We can still save him..." she vowed, more to herself than anybody else.

"Doctor!" River called, ignoring Amy. "Look at this!" She moved over to the manhole and looked down.

The Doctor followed River to the manhole with a look of interest. "So, where does that go?"

River pointed her scanner down the hole. "There's a network of tunnels running under here."

"Life signs?" enquired the Doctor.

"No. Nothing that's showing up."

"Those are the worst kind." he mused as River began to climb down into the manhole. "Be careful!"

"Careful?" said River, looking up at the Doctor with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Tried that once. Ever so dull."

"Shout if you get in trouble." the Doctor requested.

At this, River smiled knowingly. "Don't worry. I'm quite the screamer." she told him as she began to descend._ "_Now there's a spoiler for you!"

As River vanished from sight, Canton called for the Doctor's attention. "So what's going on here?"

"Uh... nothing." the Doctor replied, a tiny bit flustered. "She's just a friend."

"I think he's talking about the possible alien incursion." said Rory.

Realising his mistake, the Doctor cleared his throat. "Ok!" he said, clapping both Rory and Canton on the shoulder.


	8. Chapter 8

Once River had descended the stairs into the manhole, she found herself in what seemed like a cave. She searched the dark tunnels with her torch and almost instantly saw a whole nest of the creatures from the Beach. River looked around in horror at the strange beasts and began rapidly backing up.

Canton and Amy stood by the complex machinery, watching the Doctor examine it. "So..." Canton said idly, "I was in a bar, having a drink. Tell me honestly... am I still there?"

Amy smiled softly. "'Fraid not."

Scared and breathless, River appeared at the top of the manhole cover, her frantic eyes searching for the Doctor. In seconds, however, the space-haired woman forgot why she had been so fearful. "All clear." she assured the Doctor. "Just tunnels. Nothing down there I can see." She glanced down then met the Doctor's gaze once more. "Give me five minutes. I want to take another look around."

The Doctor, not one to miss the small things, had noted how scared River had looked and shook his head. "Stupidly dangerous!" he warned.

"Yep. I like it too." she quipped, climbing down once more. _"_Amy, look after him." requested River before disappearing completely. The woman didn't have to wait to know Amy would do as she asked.

The Doctor turned to Rory. "Rory, would you mind going with her?"

"Yeah. A bit."

"Then I appreciate it more."

With a sigh, Rory looked towards the manhole. "Hang on, River! I'm coming too..." he called unenthusiastically.

Rory followed River down into the tunnels to find her just standing there, a few feet away from the ladder, looking mildly ill. "You ok?" he asked, the nurse in him rearing its head.

"Oh, yes, yes." she replied, waving it off. "Just felt a bit sick. It's the prison food, probably." She breathed in then took out her scanner, giving it a quick glance. "Ok. This way? What do you think?" she asked. Not bothering to wait for an answer, she led Rory through the cave, neither of them hearing the faint rattling of the creature behind them. "It's interesting…" mused River. "These tunnels are old. Really old! How can they be really old and nobody notice them?"

The two travelers reached some kind of hatch. "It's a maintenance hatch!" noted Rory, wondering why there would be a maintenance hatch in these dark tunnels.

River attempted to open it, but to no avail. "It's locked. Why do people always lock things?" she murmured to herself.

"What's through there?" Rory asked.

"No idea!" she replied, leaning down to work on unlocking it.

"Something bad?"

"Almost definitely."

"You're going to open it, aren't you?" asked the Roman, dread in his tone.

"Oh, it's locked!" she responded, looking up at Rory with a grin. "How's a girl supposed to resist?"

"Is this sensible?" Rory pressed, growing ever more anxious.

River, not being a fan of anything even in the realm of sensible, went to work on the hatch without hesitation. "God, I hope not."

Rory observed River, thinking about the interactions between her and the Doctor. He gave a fond smile. "You and the Doctor... I can kind of picture it."

"Keep a look out." ordered River in response, artfully dodging the topic of her relationship with the Doctor.

This didn't go unnoticed by Rory, but he didn't push the matter. "What did you mean... what you said to Amy? There's a worse day coming for you?"

River paused, wondering if this was something she should talk about. The day she dreaded was not one she enjoyed contemplating. But this was Rory, after all. How could she _not _tell him. "When I first met the Doctor..." she began, still working on the hatch, "a long, long time ago... He knew all about me. Think about that. Impressionable young girl and suddenly this man just drops out of the sky. He's clever and mad and wonderful. And knows every last thing about her. Imagine what that does to a girl."

Rory's thoughts drifted immediately to Amy. "I don't really have to." he told her truthfully. Amy had grown up speaking of her raggedy Doctor. She drew comics featuring him, made dolls… even made Rory dress up as him. Amy's raggedy Doctor was the reason Rory pursued a career in healthcare.

"Trouble is," continued River, oblivious to Rory's trip down memory lane, "it's all back to front. My past is his future. We're travelling in opposite directions. Every time we meet, I know him more, he knows me less." she explained. "I live for the days when I see him. But I know that every time I do, he'll be one step further away." River stopped working, her eyes looking off into the distance. "The day's coming when I'll look into that man's eyes... my Doctor... and he won't have the faintest idea who I am." she contemplated sadly. The hatch unlocked but River just looked at Rory. "And I think it's going to kill me."

River opened the hatch and she and Rory entered a large room, greatly resembling the one the Doctor had seen the previous year atop the house of Craig Owens. Rory looked around, confused. "What is this place?"

Before River could answer, a klaxon sounded and she threw a look over her shoulder. "That's an alarm. Check if anything's coming."

Nodding, Rory turned and walked back to the door, looking out. He jumped in shock as he saw several of the memory creatures gathered in the tunnels. He looked back into the makeshift TARDIS to warn River, but the memory faded instantly. "There's nothing out there." he reported, taking a few steps back into the large control room.

River approached one of the panels on the console and scanned it, reading the results with interest._ "_These tunnels... they're not just here, they're everywhere. They're running under the surface of the entire planet! They've been here for centuries!" she said disbelievingly.

The crackle of electricity from the doorway drew Rory's attention, and he slowly turned, River following suit. As they saw the creatures, River watched in horror as they moved towards Rory. "Rory!"

OoOoOo

Meanwhile, Amy and Canton continued their exchange on either side of the machine. "So." Amy began, looking at Canton through the wires. "You were kicked out of the FBI because you had attitude problems?"

"No. I just wanted to get married." he told her, a hint of sadness in his voice.

"Is that a crime?"

"Yes... " Canton answered, gracefully dodging the subject. "Doctor who, exactly?" he asked, nodding towards the Doctor who was talking with a very confused looking Lyra.

"Ah... that's classified." offered Amy, going along with the theme of law enforcement.

"Classified by who?"

Amy looked over at the Doctor, wishing more than ever that he would just be more open with her. "...God knows."

OoOoOo

Lyra listened, confused, as the Doctor rambled on about… well, something scientific she guessed. Occasionally, the Doctor would throw in an odd phrase or two, such as 'wibbly-wobbly' and 'timey-wimey', at which point Lyra would always smile or give a small giggle. But these reactions would always elicit a strange look from the Doctor, almost like he was remembering the smile of a friend long since gone, which would cause Lyra to frown once more. Taking a deep breath, she interrupted the Doctor. "Why am I here?"

"I don't know," replied the Doctor, still rooting through the box of items from the space program, "maybe because my science jargon is fun? But if it's too much, you can go and join Amy and Canton."

"You know what I mean." responded Lyra with a sigh. "Why am I here? In 1969? With you and your… friends? Colleagues?"

The Doctor froze, looking up at Lyra with a look of deep sorrow in his eyes. "You got an invite, just like the rest of us." he said sadly.

Lyra wanted to tell the Doctor that it was _he _who had sent the invites, but she remembered everything River had said. She couldn't tell the Doctor his future. So, with a deep breath, she tried a different approach. "Ok then, maybe you can tell me why you keep looking at me like that?"

"Like what?" asked the Doctor, genuinely confused.

"Like… like I remind you of someone, or like you know me…" she paused. "Do you?"

The Doctor smiled. "Of course I do."

At this, Lyra tensed. Was she about to find out what this whole crazy affair was about?

"We met at a diner in Utah, you screamed at me, we went to the Whitehouse in 1969 and now we're here." he told her, a cheeky sparkle in his eyes as he went back to looking through the box. Lyra just sighed.

OoOoOo

"But you work for him?" Canton continued with Amy, back at the machine.

"He's my friend." Amy said, looking back at Canton. "If friend is the right... word. I haven't seen him in a while. I had something I wanted to tell him. But stuff always gets in the way."

Canton offered a sympathetic smile. "Stuff does that."

"Help me!" The little girl's call rang out from the far wall of the Warehouse, attracting the attention of the Doctor, Amy, Canton and Lyra. " Help, help me!"

Canton pulled his gun out instinctively, looking in the direction of the astronaut, who was slowly walking towards the group. "It's her." he said, backing away but keeping his gun aimed at the spacesuit.

As the four ran away from the figure, Amy doubled over in pain, the Doctor stopping by her side. "Amy? what's wrong?"

Groaning, Amy met the Doctor's concerned stare. "I need to tell you something, it's important."

"Doctor!" Canton called from the distance.

The Doctor turned away from Amy, torn between helping Canton and letting Amy speak her secret. "It's really really important." Amy urged, drawing the Doctor's attention back to her.

"Doctor! Quickly!" came Canton's panicked voice once more.

Deciding Canton's needs were more pressing, the Doctor turned and began to run with Amy into the next room. "What, now?" the Doctor asked as he reached the room Canton and Lyra had run into. He was met with the sight of Canton, out cold on the ground, and Lyra, kneeling beside him trying to aide him. "Canton!" he called, falling to the ex-Agent's other side. "Canton! Are you ok?"

"Is he alright?" Amy asked, looking back and forth between Lyra and the Doctor for an answer.

"Just unconscious." responded Lyra, hysteria creeping into her voice. "Got a proper whack, though! It just… it came out of nowhere…"

Sure that Canton would be safe, Amy turned once again to the Doctor. "Doctor... I need to tell you something. I have to tell you it, now."

"Not a great moment, Amy." replied the Doctor, checking to see if Canton was alright.

"No, it's important!" she insisted. "It has to be now."

The little girl's pleading voice cried from the next room. "Help! Help me!"

"Doctor..." Amy muttered. "I'm pregnant."

The Doctor looked at Amy in shock, but his surprise was short lived as the astronaut walked into the room. Both he and Amy stood and watched warily, while Lyra remained at Canton's side. "That's it." Amy murmured. "The astronaut."

The astronaut slowly lifted it's arm, reaching out like it had at Lake Silencio. Instead of shooting the Doctor, however, it lifted its visor. The Doctor and Lyra looked on, surprised, as they saw the little girl in the suit. "Help me!" the girl sobbed once more.

Amy looked down, noticing Canton's gun, and she scooped it up instantly. "Get down!" she cried.

The Doctor turned to Amy, his shock turning to horror when he saw Amy holding the gun. "What are you doing?!"

"Saving your life!" she replied, spinning on her heels and shooting at the astronaut. Too late, Amy noticed the the astronaut was just a scared little girl and she screamed in terror as the bullet pierced the helmet.

"No!" yelled the Doctor, appalled.


End file.
